Ethnic Politics and its Potentials for Violent Conflicts : A Ghanaian Perspective

Abstract

This thesis analyses the potentiality of ethnic politics and violent conflicts in Ghana. It is a fact that involvement of ethnicity in politics has been a source of conflict in some Africa countries. Most of these conflicts often tend to become a nationwide conflict with its alarming destructive impacts on humans and property. Ghana has not been spared the spectre of violent ethnic and communal conflcits that have engulfed the sub-region since the 1980s. However, in Ghana, most of these conflcit have been limited within some ethnic groups and have not threatened the stability of the state. The potentials are there espcially when the perceptions like ethnic rivalries, inequalities, ethnic imbalance, chieftaincy disputes, land litigations, fear of exclusion and ethnic tension comes to mind. It can be said that Ghana is sitting on a time bomb and ready to explode but that has not happened. This can be attributed to the institutional arrangements, public policies, Constitutional provisions and other laws that have help to regulate political competition and to manage ethnic diversity, by setting out the rules for all Ghanaians, irrespective of one’s background and ethnic affiliation which emphasis on national integration. The study therefore concludes that though there is undeniable fact that ethnicity remains a major problem in Ghanaian politics, the country has not experienced any major conflict as a result. Conflicts in Ghana has been contained by an over arching national identity which unifies people across ethnic boundaries. The strength of such a national identities is a major reason why nationwide conflicts have been limited and also why the risks of future violent conflicts are unlikely. However the success of the containment of ethnicity and conflict as obtain now will by and large depend on how political and economic power will be distributed among the political elites and the various ethnic groups in the country especially as the Fourth Republic politics progresses.